Former New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Thursday evening. 98.5 The Sports Hub reported this.
Vinatieri was not inducted into the Hall of Fame last year, his first year being eligible.
He becomes the 12th member of the Patriots organization to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the first member of the organization to be inducted since Darrelle Revis in 2023. He is also the first Patriots special teams player to be inducted into the Hall of Fame at this point.
Patriots Take Chance on Vinatieri
Vinatieri began his career with the Patriots in 1996, and stayed with the Patriots until 2006. During that time, he appeared in 160 games and made 263-of-321 field goals. He had a career 81.9% field-goal percentage well with the Patriots. He also made 98.1% of his extra points, and scored 1158 total points for the Patriots. That number was the second -most in franchise history.
The kicker also had a nose for game-winning field goals. The 2002 AFC divisional game, also known as the “Tuck Rule” game, was his first with the Patriots. He would then want to score the game-winning field goal and Super Bowl XXXVI against the St. Louis Rams. That would put an ice flow on what was a memorable postseason for the kicker.
A New Chapter with Indianapolis Colts
He began his career with the Indianapolis Colts in 2006, and continued to play at a high level. He stayed in Indianapolis until 2019, where he made 336 of 394 total field goals. In addition, he made 485 of 496 extra points. He became the all-time leading scorer in Colts’ history. He also won a Super Bowl with the organization in 2007.
Vinatieri put up some historic numbers for his career as a whole. He made 599-of-715 field goals and 874-of-898 extra points during his career. He finished with 2671 points in total during this timeframe.
Vinatieri played collegiately at South Dakota State in 1996. He was a kicker and punter at the collegiate level, and lettered all four years, according to his biography on the school’s official athletic website. He finished his career at South Dakota State with 185 total points. This put him as the school’s all-time leading scorer. He went undrafted in 1996 before being picked up by the Patriots.
Now, his football journey has come full circle, as he becomes immortalized in Canton forever.
Patriots have bright future in kicking game
Andres Borregales is the Patriots’ current kicker. He has had a stellar rookie campaign, making it 27-of-32 field goals and scoring 134 total points. He was drafted by the organization in the sixth round out of the University of Miami.
The kicker has received several accolades throughout the season. Furthermore, he has helped stabilize the kicking position, which the Patriots have sought in the post-Vinatieri era. He was named AFC Special Teams Player of the Week in Week 12 after going four-of-four on field goals and tallying 14 total points.
The future looks bright for the organization in a position where they historically have had success.
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